absence makes the heart fonder
by natodiangelo
Summary: Kurapika (tries) to wait up for Leorio.


this was written for my friend alessia's bday (which was way back in november but i forgot to post it here lol) shes awesome and i love her

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There's a light on in the kitchen when Leorio gets home. Static radio voices greet him as he walks in.

The table is covered in papers, and the papers are covered in a familiar small scrawl, rushed but still somehow neat. On top of the papers, hair falling into disarray, mouth parted on soft breaths, peacefully asleep, is Kurapika. He's wearing his red sweater, the one Leorio loves, and a pair of blue plaid pajama pants, the ones that Leorio hates. Leorio watches the slow rise and fall of his back for a moment.

He carefully turns the radio off and brushes as many of the papers as he can into a pile. Then, he puts a hand on Kurapika's shoulder.

"Kurapika." He says, sliding his hand back and forth. Kurapika stirs, thankfully, and Leorio continues, "Let's get you to bed."

He does his best to stand this half-asleep Kurapika up, and together they stumble their way to their bedroom. He lays Kurapika down and watches with a smile as he curls himself around a pillow and falls right back asleep. Leorio wants nothing more than to replace the pillow with himself, but he's still in his suit, and he hasn't had dinner, and his bladder really is too full to even think of laying down yet.

He relieves himself and changes into more comfortable clothes: a pair of gray boxers and a white t-shirt. Then, he goes back into the kitchen to scrounge up some food.

It's while he's reading yesterday's newspaper and eating some leftovers from a few nights ago that Kurapika appears. He's rubbing at his eye with one hand and playing with the hem of his sleeve with the other, and when he comes and sits in the chair next to Leorio and begins to speak, his voice is still hoarse from sleep.

"Hello, Leorio." Kurapika says, rubbing at his other eye. Leorio quickly swallows his bite and replies.

"Hey. Did you sleep well?"

Kurapika nods as he yawns. "I didn't mean to fall asleep. I thought that I might wait for you to come home, but, as you saw, that didn't happen."

"I told you not to wait up." He says. Kurapika rolls his eyes.

"I barely get to see you at all during the week. It's worth it to stay up." He yawns again, which only makes the warm feeling developing in Leorio's chest spread more quickly. It isn't often that Kurapika says lines like that, lines filled with love and affection and Kurapika's true thoughts. Leorio savors them.

"Aw, that's sweet." He says, grinning, and Kurapika frowns.

"It's just the truth. You're at work all the time-"

"I like knowing you miss me as much as I miss you."

Kurapika pauses, looks at him with his blue-gray eyes and his eyebrows still ever so slightly knit together. Leorio leans toward him and slides his hand over the soft skin of his face, rubs his thumb across his warm cheek, and presses their foreheads together.

"I love you, Kurapika." Then, he kisses him.

A kiss is nothing uncommon for them. They've been together for so long they've stopped counting, know each other well enough that they barely need to talk, have seen the best and worst of each other come out enough that they have nothing to hide.

But, for some reason Leorio can't find, this kiss, chaste, lips merely pressed against lips, feels so much more intimate, so much more affectionate, so much more loving than anything he's felt for a while.

He pulls away and looks fondly over Kurapika's flushed face. He's not frowning anymore, and that's more of a victory than Leorio had ever hoped of achieving.

"I love you, too." Kurapika says, gaze steady on Leorio's. "And of course I miss you."

Leorio grins, says, "I'm glad," then, hand still pressed against Kurapika's face, fingers brushing against his blond hair, he kisses him again.

It's late, even later than he had hoped, when they finally get to bed. Leorio lays down and Kurapika curls into his front, one hand gripping the fabric of his shirt and the other under his head. Leorio rests one arm over his waist and tangles one of his legs with Kurapika's. He presses a kiss to Kurapika's forehead as he falls asleep and lets his eyes close.

He's going to be late again tomorrow, but Kurapika will wait for him, and, really, that's all he needs.


End file.
